A landmark photography project
Photography by Katie O'Neill
Michael Browne is a critically acclaimed fine artist, best known for his large-scale Renaissance-inspired paintings. His work powerfully weaves together themes of human rights, politics, racial history and identity, heroism, and sport, earning him recognition both in the art world and beyond.
Although my mother’s absence was hard, I believe that’s how I started to discover my artistic gift. My talent continued to develop Childhood.
Born in 1963 in Moss Side, Manchester, Michael was raised by a single mother who faced significant personal struggles rooted in her own past. Reflecting on his early years, Michael shares: “She wasn’t around much when I was young. She was either working as a dishwasher, or out socialising in the pubs, so I spent many late nights alone as a child, drawing”.
Fine artist, Michael Browne
Michael with his mother Patricia in 1987 (Photo: Michael Browne)
As a child, Michael moved between Hulme and Moss Side. At the age of 15, he was thrown out of the family home by his mother. Fortunately, his art teacher, Howard Love, and his family took him in and offered him a place to stay for a year. In this more stable and supportive environment, Michael thrived - both personally and artistically - finding the space to focus on his work and stay out of trouble.
Michael attended Wilbraham High School. Despite achieving mixed results in his A-Levels, he was offered a place at Manchester Polytechnic to pursue a foundation course in art. During this period, in 1982, he was invited to hold a solo exhibition at the Ginnel Gallery in Manchester. At the time, Michael was on probation due to his involvement in events related to the Moss Side riots. With the support of his probation officer and a close friend, he secured an interview for a degree program at the Chelsea School of Art. The interview was successful, and Michael earned a place at the prestigious institution. While studying in London, he sold several pieces of his artwork, marking the beginning of his professional journey in the art world.
In 1993, Michael completed his MA at Manchester Metropolitan University. That same year, while back in Manchester, he gained global media attention for a major commission at Cocotoo restaurant, where he spent two years covering the 2,000-square-foot ceiling with a replica of Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel masterpiece.
Michael & his Sistine Chapel inspired commission at Cocotoo
Restaurant, 1993 (Photo: Michael Browne)
Art of the Game, 1997 (Photo: Michael Browne)
Perhaps Michael’s most famous work, The Art of the Game, followed in 1997, a piece chronicling Eric Cantona’s footballing redemption and also featuring Sir Alex Ferguson, David Beckham, Nicky Butt and Gary and Phil Neville.
A lifelong Manchester United fan, Michael struggled to engage with Cantona but started the piece anyway. Barca’s management (a bar in Castlefield, where Mick Hucknall was a co-owner) allowed him to use their wall space. He spent 10 months there working in public. Two weeks in, Eric paid a surprise visit. Michael claims this marked the start of a significant period of his creative practice.
The artwork was later displayed in the National Portrait Gallery, as part of their Painting the Century exhibition.
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Art of the Game - Eric Cantona poses for Michael at
Barca, Castlefield (Photo: Michael Browne)
Michael Browne has exhibited his work nationwide and was the focus of the BBC documentary Michael Browne – Made in England. In 2023, his exhibition From Moss Side to Marseille: The Art of Michael Browne and Eric Cantona enjoyed a highly successful run at the National Football Museum in Manchester. Created in collaboration with France and Manchester United legend Eric Cantona, the collection of ten pieces was inspired by sporting heroes who used their platforms to champion social change - often at significant personal cost.
Art of the Game - unveiling, 1997. L-r Phil Neville, Gary Neville, Michael, Sir Alex Ferguson & David Beckham (Photo: Michael Browne)
From Moss Side to Marseille, 2023
Michael alongside Eric Cantona & Sir Alex Ferguson at the opening of From Moss Side to Marseille at the National Football Museum, 2023
In 2025, Michael Browne unveiled and exhibited his latest major work Sovereign Servant at Manchester Museum. The painting is a powerful exploration of Empire and its enduring influence on modern British identity. Drawing inspiration from Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres’ The Apotheosis of Homer. This large-scale piece offers a striking commentary on the contemporary state of the UK and the complex legacy of imperial history.
Sovereign Servant, 2025
Sovereign Servant - Michael Browne in conversation
Michael is currently working on additional private commissions for Eric Cantona, alongside a range of personal projects. He is also a resident artist at GRIT Studios, the vibrant art collective and studio space housed within Manchester’s Great Northern Warehouse.
THE SHOOT 1: Michael's studio space, 293 Deansgate, Manchester
Photographed against the backdrop of his most recent large-scale painting Sovereign Servant
THE SHOOT 2: Pepperhill Walk, Moss Side, Manchester
An emotional visit to the house Michael shared with his mother in his chaotic teenage years.
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Student reflection: Katie O'Neill
We caught Michael slightly off guard when we arrived at his city centre studio. He was deep in conversation with a group of curious art lovers and didn’t immediately notice us. Once he did, Michael welcomed us warmly. We talked about the Greater Mancunians project and his own artwork before I began photographing him in front of his latest piece, Sovereign Servant. The painting, a large-scale work that couldn’t be moved, limited my positioning options, there was only a narrow space between it and the studio’s panoramic window. Still, the even, natural light flooding in made the shoot smooth and effortless.
In the next series of images, I took advantage of the studio’s working atmosphere, capturing Michael in creative mode - brush in hand, palette at the ready.
For the second part of the shoot, we drove to Moss Side, to the house on Pepperhill Walk where Michael lived with his mother during his teenage years. As he stood on the familiar street, it was clear he was quietly emotional. The visit stirred powerful memories from a formative and challenging time in his life, one that remains deeply connected to his creative journey.
Michael was a joy to work with; patient, fully engaged in the process, and refreshingly honest.
